Articles

Opinion: Iraq: It’s a war, not a buffet

In Washington, sometimes it’s preferable to be wrong in a group than to be right alone. Nothing demonstrates the triumph of this truism better than the release Wednesday of the final Iraq Study Group report. The commission’s chairman, James A. Baker III, could not have been more obvious if he had used hand puppets to illustrate what he thought was most important about this supposedly momentous occasion: The fact that all the report’s authors actually agree with its contents.

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Opinion: Paranoia alive and well

If the Christian base of the GOP gets its way, “All government employees — federal, state and local — would be required to participate in weekly Bible classes in the workplace, as well as compulsory daily prayer sessions.”

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Opinion: Unpatriotism in the U.S.

There is a virulent form of unpatriotism festering in America today. Like an algae bloom that deprives life of oxygen, it starves democracy of the air of reason. It now thrives on what we call the far left, but like a dead zone off the coast, it moves with the tides.

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Opinion: ACLU’s double standard

“We do not insist that our medicine, our technology, or even our entertainment, all remain in an obsolete state; why would we demand that the law be given such treatment? It seems absurd to suggest that we can change the speed limit to reflect improved technology but we cannot interpret the Constitution to reflect improvements in society.”

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A case for extremism

Americans love their angry moderates, their principled centrists and their predictable independents almost as much as they love jumbo shrimp and other oxymorons.

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Cease-fire doesn’t work for Israel

In the last few days there have been a lot of rumors of impending cease-fires and diplomatic initiatives in the Middle East. Condoleezza Rice, to the cheers of many, is reportedly heading to the region to head off further escalation. I hope she doesn’t go, and if she does, I hope her success is measured in photo ops and nothing more, because Israel has a moral and strategic obligation to invade southern Lebanon.

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A need for big ideas

For several years now, liberal eggheads have been having what seems like an important debate: Do they need “big ideas” like the conservative movement had during its long march to power? Serious-minded liberals launched what Democratic idea-broker Kenneth S. Baer calls “the battle of the battle of ideas,” in which they argue about whether it’s time to argue about important arguments.

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Superman vs. Lone Ranger

What does Superman have to do with the Supreme Court’s Hamdan v. Rumsfeld decision? Quite a lot, actually.

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Columns

Opinion: McCain should pin Obama on the donkey

Hoping that the third time really is the charm, the McCain campaign has had yet another staff shakeup. As befits a press corps and Republican professional class always eager to gain favor and access to the newest man in charge, the accolades for the latest campaign manager, Steve Schmidt, are nothing short of superlative.

Opinion: Obama's 'hope' message is a fairy tale

I like Barack Obama. The Clintons, not so much. But the Clintons are right and Obama is wrong.

Opinion: Exposing liberal media’s misguided hero-worship

In an age when Fox News is a ratings juggernaut and Katie Couric is ratings roadkill, it seems almost antique to talk about liberal media bias. But it’s still out there, my friends. Just look at the hilarious press release masquerading as a news story in Time magazine. With a picture of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg looking like henchmen from Murder Inc., Time proclaims these politicians “The New Action Heroes.”

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Opinion: Going to war over wine

The British government recently unveiled plans for a massive crackdown on “excessive drinking,” particularly among the middle class. It will include all of the familiar tactics of public health officials: dire new warnings on wine bottles, public awareness campaigns, scolding from men and women in lab coats.

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